AVONDALE, Ariz. – Phoenix International Raceway stood alone in the desert 40 years ago, a sprawling facility surrounded by mountains, cactuses and tumbleweeds.
When the track opened in 1964, the seating capacity was 10,000 and the narrow roads leading to it were big enough to handle the auto racing fans who came to see some of the nation’s best drivers.
Today, there are 80,000 permanent seats, in addition to luxury suites and enough additional space to hold crowds of more than 100,000, and the one-mile oval speedway is considered one of the best of its kind in the nation.
Phoenix International Raceway is one of 12 motor-sports facilities across the country owned by International Speedway Corp., which is considering Snohomish County as one of several possible places to build a track in the Pacific Northwest.
Phoenix International is busy 300 days a year, but the largest crowds come for eight major events, including the Indy Racing League in the spring and the NASCAR Nextel Cup in the fall. A big race weekend may draw more than four times the population of this town of about 29,000, creating a long parade of race fans flowing into and out of town.
Can anyone say it’s a major headache to the community?
That may depend on who’s making money off the speedway and who’s not.
“I thoroughly enjoy NASCAR fans,” Avondale Mayor Ron Drake said. “They are the greatest sports fans in the world.”
And they leave lots of money behind.
A study conducted by Arizona State University showed that race fans from every state in the country add more than $300 million to the Arizona economy each year. The NASCAR Nextel Cup weekend in the fall accounts for more than $100 million alone.
By comparison, the NFL’s Super Bowl will be played at a new stadium in nearby Glendale, Ariz., in 2008, and that event is expected to bring in $300 million.
“That’s for an event that comes once in a blue moon,” said Mike Prusinski, public relations director for Phoenix International Raceway. “We’re providing that every single year.”
However, it’s not a cash cow for everyone.
There aren’t many fans of racing at Mel’s Hay, Feed and Pet Supplies, an old-time store located for 25 years on 115th Avenue about two miles from the speedway. That road provides a major access to the speedway from Interstate 10.
Owner Daryl Crouse said traffic jams caused by racing fans ruin his business during the 12 to 14 days a year when the speedway crowds are large. He said he averages $500 in sales on normal days, but on race days he makes virtually nothing because the traffic keeps customers away.
He said noise from the race cars is barely noticeable, but the traffic is inescapable.
“When the race events are going on, this business realistically should close its doors,” Crouse said. “My customers won’t battle the traffic, and I basically twiddle my thumbs and lose money.”
Avondale officials said the speedway has been a good neighbor and complaints from residents have been minimal, even though schools and housing developments have crept to within a couple of miles of the facility.
“PIR is quite removed from the heart of the community,” said Jeff Fairman, Avondale’s economic development director. “The track has been there since the 1960s, and the homes have grown up around the track, as opposed to vice versa.”
As recently as five years ago, there was little more than farmland on the two-lane stretch of 115th Avenue, the main artery that runs five miles from Interstate 10 to the speedway. Today, that road is four to six lanes wide, and along it are hundreds of new homes, businesses, schools and a new civic center that houses city offices and, soon, speedway headquarters.
The speedway is used for functions that include tests by racing teams, training for local public safety agencies (who are allowed use of the facility for free), business meetings, arts and crafts fairs, TV commercials, movie productions and a celebration every Fourth of July.
In addition, the speedway donates money to more than 90 organizations in Arizona, including a recent fund-raiser that benefited the fine arts council in Avondale.
“They’re good corporate citizens,” Drake said. “This has been a win-win for both of us.”
Crouse isn’t surprised to hear city officials say little but positive things about the speedway. “Avondale is not going to say anything bad about it,” he said. “It generates a huge amount of sales tax revenue for them.”
The biggest benefit is the 3 percent city sales tax from ticket sales, food, souvenirs, entertainment and other items that race fans purchase at the speedway.
That’s far from pocket change, considering single-day race crowds range from 50,000 at a recent IndyCar Series race to an expected 100,000 for the Nextel Cup race in the fall. More than 400,000 attended racing events at the speedway in 2003.
Drake said the tax revenue has allowed roads leading to the speedway to be widened and a bridge to be built that has improved access. NASCAR has considered adding a second Nextel Cup race, and if that happens, more road improvements will take place, he said.
Avondale officials admit they are missing a huge revenue opportunity, because years ago they didn’t envision the speedway’s potential. There’s not a hotel in town, and only a few restaurants, so race fans stay elsewhere and spend much of their $300 million in nearby cities.
“Had we been paying attention, we would have more hotels, more restaurants, more amenities that the race-goers and race teams rely on,” Fairman said.
“The vast majority of the impact is felt by the surrounding communities. A lot of NASCAR teams helicopter in and stay in other parts of Phoenix. It’s very much a regional issue, and not a local issue. In that regard, everybody does better.”
Despite Crouse’s complaints, Drake points out that local residents benefit year-round from the road improvements and that a few days of heavy traffic are worth the trade-off.
“We fill this place, but there’s nothing big to watch out for” on the negative side, he said. “A concern would be the influx of people, because you’re going to be bringing people who are strangers to your community. But these are great fans. They love their sport, and they don’t want to impose on others. We love NASCAR.”
Added Fairman: “We bear the burden of the traffic, but overall, it’s not been an issue or a problem.”
Fairman advised any community considering such a facility to work with the speedway owners, recognize the best way to handle the impact and, of course, profit from it.
“Strengthen the partnership and work closely,” he said. “This is not unlike building a football stadium, but the impact from the racetrack is far greater than what you’d see from other sports venues.
“The really cool thing is that race-goers only utilize it a few weekends a year. But the community will have the benefit of the hotels, the restaurants and the conference centers the year-round.”
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